Police: Seattle man plagued by either hungry burglar or messy cats

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SEATTLE -- It's possible a Capitol Hill resident had his condo broken into twice in two days while he was out grocery shopping. However, it's also possible he just has a pair of messy cats.

According to the Seattle Police Department, officers were called to the man's apartment in the 300 block of Summit Avenue East shortly before 3:30 a.m. Feb. 19 after he discovered a red folder containing tax documents had gone missing.

When officers arrived, the man reported two different break-ins that occurred in the prior two days.

The man told officers he returned from a quick grocery shopping trip Feb. 17 during which he didn't lock his condo only to find frozen cookies and a plate of cheese on the kitchen counter, two glasses in the corner of the living room, and water on the carpet next to his bed.

Despite this apparent home invasion, the man went to the grocery store again without locking his door on Feb. 18. This time, he returned to find more strange liquid spots on the carpet next to his bed, according to the police report for the incident.

The man told officers he tasted and smelled the liquid (as you do when you think a stranger has been in your condo, leaving mysterious wet spots all over) and believes it is water.

He did admit his two cats could be the culprits as their water bowl is near where he found the spots (making his decision to taste mysterious wet spots all the bolder).

According to the report, the man still didn't call police following second suspected break-in until the early hours of Feb. 19 when he discovered his folder of tax documents missing.

In the interim, the man had cleaned up the wet spots, food and glasses. So, officers were unable to look for clues as to the nature of the apparent break-ins, according to the report.

Officers instructed the man to start locking his condo and setting its alarm when he goes out.

The man said he would. He also said he would call the officers if he found his tax documents somewhere around the condo.